DON ‘THE DRAGON’ WILSON – 2015 INDUCTEE

If you spent any time at Cocoa Beach’s Brassy’s Nightclub in the 1980s, you surely remember the nights the dance floor was converted to a kickboxing ring and the bouncers didn’t stop the fighting.

And surely, you remember Don “The Dragon” Wilson. He fought there 11 times in a seven-year span.
Though he was born in Illinois, like many other Brevardians, Wilson became a local when his dad took an engineering job at Kennedy Space Center.

After high school in Boca Raton, he attended the Coast Guard Academy, where he began studying karate. He returned to Brevard in 1973 and earned an A.A. in electrical engineering at Brevard Community College.

He initially planned to continue his education at Florida Institute of Technology, but as often happens, the plans changed.

According to reports at the time, “At the end of the third round, Wilson came alive and exploded with a flurry that eventually knocked Kimber to the floor motionless.”

He was named to the Word Kickboxing League Hall of Fame in 2010.

Since retiring from the ring, Wilson has worked as a commentator in Ultimate Fighting Championship matches. It was rumored that Wilson was considering a return to the ring in the UFC, but that never materialized.

ACCOMPLISHED ACTOR

Wilson made headlines after his fighting career as well. Reports said that while attending a martial arts tournament in Reno, NV, he witnessed a purse-snatching.

The Dragon has also had roles – both acting and producing – in over 50 films, documentaries, videos, and television shows since the 1980s – including the cult classic – Bloodfist.

Wilson reportedly chased down a thief who had taken an elderly woman’s bag. He held the perpetrator in submission until the police arrived.

The Dragon has also had roles – both acting and producing – in over 50 films, documentaries, videos, and television shows since the 1980s – including the cult classic – Bloodfist.

In that film, Wilson played a dojo sensei in California who travels to the Philippines to avenge his professional kickboxer brother, who was murdered after a fight.

Don “The Dragon” Wilson was certainly the “real deal,” and one of the most highly respected members of the kickboxing community in his heyday.